Many important industrial chemicals are derived from petroleum, and their cost and availability are related to the cost and availability of crude oil and the accessibility of appropriate processing facilities. For example, benzene is produced mostly from oil refinery streams including catalytic reformate and pyrolysis gasoline, and propylene is typically produced from steam cracking of various hydrocarbons and from refinery cracking operations. The value of feedstock used for these processes is often tied to a fuel value or other volatile indicator. Benzene, toluene, and xylenes (BTX) are valuable feedstocks for numerous chemical processes.
There is a constant drive to reduce the cost of these feedstocks. Methods of reducing the costs and increasing the availability of benzene, toluene, etc., would be advantageous.